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4 Tips for Seeking Charities when Wanting to Support Veterans

Many American citizens prefer to support the veterans for honoring them for their services. But, it may overwhelm you to know that there are more than 8000 groups to choose from. So, in order to seek charities that cater to veterans’ services, you need to do some due diligence. Pay heed to these tips when on it.

  1. Learn the objectives of the charities

Always beware of ambiguous statements about the activities of a group. While the words may say support or honors, but always seek more specific information. It is hard to determine which charity is genuine and which is not. Once you get a hold of the detailed description of the missions and activities of the group, then it helps in instilling more confidence where the veterans make the most of the benefits.

  1. Find out what share of money raised from companies supports the veterans

Another thing to look out for is the for-hire fundraisers who siphon too much of the donated money. The attorney general of Michigan claimed that only 39 percent of money raised by collectors for charity in the state supported those groups in the year 2016. The fundraising contractors kept the rest of the money with themselves. It seemed fishier for the veterans’ charities in the state where only 23 percent of donations made itself to be known.

  1. Check out the 990 forms

Not everyone loves reading the IRS forms, but this gives you the best idea to know how donor dollars are actually spent. You can easily find a charity tax form, charity organizations never post them on their websites, but there are many sources to where you can find the 990 forms. The 990 form of the Semper Fi states that the group doesn’t spend huge money on fundraising and administration. If the charity has a focus on supporting the veterans financially, you may find granst to people, but not much in advertising, travel and postage.

  1. Ask about donor’s privacy policies

When it comes to making charity, you give away your money as well as your personal information. How these organizations deal with your personal data must be considered. For instance, the Wounded Warrior Project and the way it handled donor data. The organization was caught in 2015-16 for alleged waste and selling personal information of its donors.

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